Network driven board game instruction generator and methods for interaction with participant

ABSTRACT

Interaction between a telephone system in a multiplayer board game providing real time input to game play in a multi player board game during the course of game play. Players make telephone calls to a special game play service provider at a remote phone number at the start of the game. The service provider then initiates a series of calls to the players&#39; telephones during the course of game play. These calls provide game play input which could impact the outcome of the game. For example while playing a Monopoly board game, players may receive telephone calls during a forty five-minute period. The calls would provide instructions for various game effects, similar to Community Chest or Chance cards. Telephonic instructions also provide additional play experience during game play by occasionally dictating moves and instructions to game players, e.g., to improve the play experience and accelerate the game by driving property into the game and by driving money out of the game.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention in general relates to board game methods thatinvolve providing instruction generators via an electronic contentinformation interface. More particularly, the invention relates totelephonic and other electronic interfaces for use with board games toprovide content for playing a multiplayer game linked or suited fortelephonic interactions utilizing the communications capabilities oftelephones and the like.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Various types of board games are known in the art. Board games typicallyprovide a playing surface with a particular playing path marked out,upon which the game players move individualized game pieces. These gamesoften incorporate game die, and one or more card sets that determineexclusively or under particular circumstances how game pieces are movedon the game board. For example, the well known game of Monopoly TMincludes a playing path upon which the players moves game pieces whereeach player rolls a die and moves their game piece the number of spacesindicated on the playing path, occasionally according to the chance of acard drawn from one or more card sets on the board further moves andinstructions are dictated to game players.

Multimedia associated with games, e.g., utilizing DVD media are alsoknown to exist. Some include game boards, game piece set up and thelike. The prior art generally addresses certain aspects and advantagesof using media players which can quickly and accurately access specificcontent data. DVD players facilitate programming capabilities and maycontain information such as scripts and instructions readable andexecutable by a computer or a DVD media player according to gamevariables.

As multimedia technology has become more accessible to the public, gamemanufacturers have begun to incorporate traditional board games and thelike with media for multimedia systems such as DVD video machines andtelevisions. One way of accomplishing participant interaction is by wayof the multimedia system seeking answers to questions in audio or videoform and having the participant players answer questions, then movinggame pieces on a board in response. Players using a multimedia userinterface indicate to the multimedia system that they are ready for aquestion, and the system selects a question and plays the audio or videoinformation corresponding to the question selected.

Sometimes games require the need to content information andinstructional information to players of the game. This may beparticularly necessary if the purpose of the game is to solve a puzzle.In competitive multiplayer games, there has always been a need for aplayer to receive information that may establish relative competitiveadvantages between players in the game. Previous games have attempted toachieve the provision of information through the use of rules, playingcards, or according to the chance of cards drawn from card sets on theboard for further moves and instructions dictated to game players.

Single player lottery games are known to provide telephone input forlottery gaming purposes via telephone communication systems, howeversuch is neither suitable for input during the course of multiplayergames nor for the provision of random telephone input during the courseof a multiplayer board game. Fore example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,899,329 toSeelig et al. for “Telephone gaming device” issued May 31, 2005 relatesto a gaming device that allows the game player to place a telephonecall, with a second telephone call placed to a telephone number with acontroller generating a prize/multiplier to obtain a total prize.

It would be desirable to provide interactions as between electronicscommunications or telephony networks on one hand and traditional gameson the other hand to make such traditional games more exciting to bothyounger generations who have become accustomed to communications mediasystems and to older generations. It would be further advantageous tofacilitate telephonic and similar networked electronic communicationsinterfaces for use with games to deliver content information for playinga multiplayer game. The invention described herein addresses thesedeficiencies of the prior art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides electronic communications network contentand instruction information receipt in a multiplayer board gameenvironment using or including a conventional land-line or cellulartelephone, including such systems and processes for receipt of random orpseudo-random selections with a plurality of game content items providedfor game play. A method for an interaction between a player and the gameuses a call in telephone service which allows users to call in beforestarting a board game to trigger a series of calls to be received duringthe game. The calls create various game effects designed to improve theplay experience and accelerate the game, including providing randomtelephone input during the course of a multiplayer game using adedicated phone service. Moreover options include initiating the callfrom a cellular phone that can receive multimedia downloads andutilizing multiple cellular phones in a single game play experience.

In a described embodiment while playing the Monopoly board game, playersreceive calls during a forty five-minute period. The telephone callswould provide instructions for simple game effects, similar to CommunityChest or Chance cards. However, the instructions are designed to provideadditional play experience during game play.

Briefly, interaction between a telephone system in the multiplayer boardgame provides real time input to game play in a multi player board gameduring the course of game play. The player makes a phone call to aspecial game play service at a remote phone number at the start of thegame. The service would then make a series of calls to the player'sphone during the course of game play. These calls would provide gameplay input which could impact the outcome of the game. The game boardhas defined locations using a plurality of game pieces for moving, withan instruction generator providing an audible instruction to at leastone of the game players and an interface for coupling the instructiongenerator for receiving electronic information.

The subject inventions may be applied to network communication forseveral types of content and information delivered via any of a varietyof electronic telecommunications media and digital content distributors,such as a cellular phone providers, video on demand (VOD), or an on-linewebsite set up so that the game is played alongside a laptop or anI-Pod™. These and other advantages are realized with the describedembodiments. The invention advantages may be best understood from thedescribed embodiments. However, it will be appreciated that numerouschanges and modifications will occur to those skilled in the art, and itis intended in the appended claims to cover those changes andmodifications which fall within the true spirit and scope of the presentinvention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will now be more particularly described, by way ofexample, with reference to the accompanying drawings, novel featuresbelieved characteristic of the invention are set forth in the appendedclaims. The invention itself as well as the preferred mode of use,further objectives and advantages thereof, is best understood byreference to the following detailed description of the embodiments inconjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a game board with a plurality of game pieces formoving on the game board, a selectable game element for directing theplayers to move the game pieces, and an instruction generator providingaudible instructions via an interface for coupling the instructiongenerator for receiving electronic information in accordance with adescribed embodiment of the present invention illustrating use inconnection with the well known game of Monopoly TM; and

FIG. 2 shows a flow chart via a telephonic interface for coupling theinstruction generator for receiving electronic information in accordancewith the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

In a described embodiment, the invention provides interaction between atelephone system and a multiplayer board game providing random telephoneinput during the course of the multiplayer board game using a dedicatedtelephone service. FIG. 1 illustrates the improved board game 10 with aninstruction generator 12 via an interface for receiving electronicinformation. The players interact with the telephone system whichprovides unique types of interactions as between the players of theboard game. The telephone system allows selected players to receive oneor more messages during the course of game play, e.g., via a number oftelephone calls that may correspond similarly to Chance and CommunityChest cards or the like. Thus board games may be offered as beingplayable without the use of the telephone, while being much enhancedthrough the use of the telephone. Accordingly the board game product maybe promoted through the provision of telephone enhanced gaming.

With reference to FIG. 1, the game has a game board 14 having aplurality of defined locations, a plurality of game pieces 16, 18 formoving on the game board, at least one game piece for each of aplurality of game players. A variety of selectable game elements 20 areprovided for directing the players to move the game pieces on the gameboard, e.g., card sets, dice, timer/ hour glass devices, pointer devicesor the like. The instruction generator 12 provides communications ofelectronic information instruction content, e.g., an audible instructionto at least one of the game players. These include an instructiongenerator in which a telephone 22 and its interface is provided with acommunications network 24 to telephone system 26, with access e.g., viatelephone network phone cards, registration or limited timesubscriptions for access to a service provider. The informationprocessor is thus provided as a server 28 within the electroniccommunications network 24, or a computer network for generatingelectronic information. As illustrated wireless devices such as digitalmobile phones 30 and personal digital assistants (PDAs) 32 may be usedwith the communications network 24, as well as a computer 34 ortelevision 36.

The players call a special number at the beginning of play and duringthe next forty-five minutes receive six call from, e.g., Mr. Monopoly inthe present described of the Monopoly™ board game. Additionally, thecommunications interface also facilitates player receiving content ormessages made to the same phone during the course of play which create anumber of game effects designed to improve the play experience and/ oraccelerate the game, e.g., by driving property into the game with thefirst three calls and by driving money out of the game with the lastthree calls. Interaction between a telephone system in a multiplayerboard game providing real time input to game play in a multi playerboard game during the course of game play. The service providerinitiates a series of calls to the players' telephones during the courseof game play. These calls provide game play input which could impact theoutcome of the game. Telephonic instructions also provide additionalplay experience during game play by occasionally dictating moves andinstructions to game players, e.g., to improve the play experience andaccelerate the game by driving property into the game and by drivingmoney out of the game. The calls create various game effects designed toimprove the play experience and accelerate the game, including providingrandom telephone input during the course of a multiplayer game using adedicated phone service. Moreover options include (1) initiating thecall from a cellular phone that can receive multimedia downloads and (2)utilizing multiple cellular phones in a single game play experience.

In a present described embodiment implemented into the Monopoly TM boardgame, the game contains most of the original elements of the originalMonopoly TM board game but now includes one or more electronicscommunications components for interaction with the players. Thisexperience can be played with a single phone which may be a cellular orstandard land line, and phone cards, registration or one timesubscriptions and the like may be used to access the service.Contemporary standard features of cellular phones and other personalelectronics devices are used, including picture downloads, instantmessaging (IM and/or SMS) and multiple devices may be used by individualplayers. Short Message Service (SMS) provides a telecommunicationsprotocol for sending short text messages, which are available on mostdigital mobile phones and personal digital assistants (PDAs). SMSgateways connect mobile SMS services with instant message (IM) services,the world wide web, desktop computers, and landline telephones. Devicesthat can connect to mobile phones and PDAs through protocols may alsosend SMS messages over the wireless network. This kind ofservice/service provider and associated game can even include gameswithin games where a player may have the chance to solve a mini-puzzleor mini-game in between turns to win a bonus that can then be applied inthe real board game being played.

The most common application of the service is person-to-personmessaging, but text messages are also often used to interact withautomated systems, such as ordering products and services for mobilephones, or participating in contests. There are some services availableon the Internet that allow users to send text messages free of directcharge to the sender, although users of North American networks willoften have to pay to receive any SMS text message As described herein“content” is provided as specific combinations of speech and soundeffects, stored on the server as sound files, then selected based onseveral parameters and played over the phone, which features:

1—Avoids repeats of the same phone call, guarantees (within definedlimits) a different experience every time the game service is accessed.

2—Pro-actively affects the gameplay experience based on the preferencesof the purchaser/subscriber. (Such can adjust the chronologicalprogression or “pace” of a game by selecting both frequency of calls,and phone call content which can either advance the game toward aconclusion, or extend the play; or adjust the difficulty of the game.)

3—Provides the purchaser/subscriber these capabilities without requiringthe purchase any additional device(s).

4—Ongoing updates and refreshment of the content database enable thegames to infuse current relevance, information, and events in real timeinto the game play of traditional board games, which were formerlylimited by the date their cardware was printed.

5—Subscribers can input “customized” information online - names, places,and events which can be woven into the content of the game. For example,players could become characters in a game scenario, and be addressed byname.

Two to eight people may play Monopoly™, and the game dynamics can varysubstantially depending upon the number of players. For example, ifthere are more than six players it is more likely that an individualwill not have the opportunity to buy significant property and bebankrupted without ever having been in contention. With four or fewerplayers, there are not as many possible combinations of propertyownership, and the importance of trading and negotiation aspects may bediminished. Such also may be manipulated via the electroniccommunications interface to the game with randomized calls allowing theinstruction generator to provide content that may affect these dynamicsof the board game, also introducing a real time element to game play.

Each player is represented by a small pewter token or game piece whichis moved around the edge of the board according to the roll of two dice.The twelve playing pieces are used and each player begins the game withtheir game piece on the Go Square, with $1500 in cash or predetermineddenominations. Further standard items include: a pair of six-sided dice;a Title Deed for each property, given to a player to signify ownership,specifying purchase price, mortgage value, cost of building houses andhotels on that property and rent prices depending on how the property isdeveloped. Properties include: 22 streets, divided into 8 color groupsof two or three streets. (A player must own all of a color group to havea monopoly and to build houses or hotels; a limited supply of 32 housesand 12 hotels are provided.) A player can also be considered to have amonopoly by having both utilities and/or all four railroads (orstations) during game play.

Players compete to acquire wealth through stylized economic activityinvolving the buying, rental and trading of properties using play money,as players take turns moving around the board according to the roll ofthe dice. Monopoly involves a substantial amount of strategy and luck,with the roll of the dice determining whether a player gets to own keyproperties or lands on squares with high rents. Players take turns inorder, with the initial player determined by chance before the game,which may further be provided via electronic communications as describedherein. Going last is often a significant disadvantage because one ismore likely to land on property which has already been bought andtherefore be forced to pay rent instead of having an opportunity to buyun-owned property. The randomized calls via the interface, allows theinstruction generator to provide content that may affect these dynamicsof the board game. A player's turn uses selectable game elements fordirecting the players to move the game pieces on the game board, andincludes rolling two dice and advancing on the board the correspondingnumber of squares clockwise around the track. Depending on where thegame piece lands, the player may take a number of actions. If the gamepiece lands on an un-owned property, railroads or utilities then theplayer has two options, either buy the property for its listed purchaseprice, or he can put it up for auction. If the game piece lands onChance or Community Chest, then the player draws the top card from therespective set of cards. When players roll doubles, they roll againafter completing the first turn, but if players roll three sets ofdoubles in a row, they go to jail. If players land on an owned propertythey pay the owner an amount of rent set on colored properties andrailroads, and multiplies of a dice roll by a certain factor for theutilities. Players may also buy houses for their property if they ownall the property in a color group. The rent increases the more housesare on a space. Once there are four houses on a space, the player canbuild a hotel. The construction or selling back of houses and hotelsmust be done evenly across all properties in a color group. Thus eachproperty must have first received one house before a second can beconstructed, two houses before a third can be constructed, etc. Each ofwhich may further be manipulated via the electronic communicationsinterface to the game with randomized calls allowing the instructiongenerator to provide content that may affect these dynamics of the boardgame, as illustrated in connection with Chance and Community Chest 38within the electronic communications network 24 or server 28.

The Monopoly™ Chance and Community Chest can affect overall game flow.There are 32 cards in the Chance and Community Chest card sets (a deckof 16 Chance cards and a deck of 16 Community Chest cards). Each ofwhich may be augmented or substituted with the described electroniccommunications interface to the game with randomized calls allowing theinstruction generator to provide content that may affect these dynamicsof the board game. Players draw these cards when they land on thecorresponding squares of the track, and follow the instructions printedon them. The Community Chest is generally positive and Chance is a bitmore risky; the cards serve to introduce a random factor in a waysimilar to the dice. For example, drawing a Take a Walk on Boardwalkcard, with its associated rent fees, can often cause bankruptcy of agame player. When players land on a square having the Chance orCommunity Chest logo they must draw a card and then follow itsinstructions. The Community Chest content and instructions are mostlyfinancial and can drive money or property into or out of the game: 10 ofthese cards allow the player to draw money from the bank; a get out ofjail free card; and others are bad with costs of, e.g., $300 orinstructing a player to go to jail (which may be beneficial to avoidrent fees associated with moving on the game board at certain points inthe game play); or pay street repairs, etc. For example, of these cards,one of substantial concern is street repairs, requiring players to pay$40 per house and $115 per hotel which can be hurt any player that hasimproved properties with little cash reserves. Such also may bemanipulated via the electronic communications interface to the game withrandomized calls allowing the instruction generator to provide contentthat may affect these dynamics of the board game.

The Chance card set includes 5 cards having immediate financial impact.There is also a street repairs card in the Chance card set which isslightly less ($25 for a house, and $100 for each hotel). The remainderof the cards have content that directs movement and slightly increasethe value of some properties, and because of this they drive propertyinto the game or distribute money within the game which may bemanipulated via the electronic communications interface to the game withrandomized calls and the like. As an enhancement to the railroads, twocards direct the bearer to pay the owner twice the rental. If playersland on an owned property they may have to pay the owner a slightlyincreased value of some properties rent set on colored properties.Players landing on utilities owned by others pay multiplies of a diceroll by a certain factor for the utilities, i.e., the utilities Chancecard can set rent at 10 times the roll of the dice. Such factors may bemanipulated via the electronic communications interface to the game withrandomized calls allowing the instruction generator to provide contentthat may affect these dynamics of the board game.

With reference to the flow chart of FIG. 2, processes are showndiagrammatically for using a telephonic interface version of the presentgame suitable for coupling the instruction generator 12 for receivingelectronic information. Because of the capabilities of multimedia, thecontent provided in FIG. 2 may be augmented by spoken quotations orother audio or visual output or similar types of information. A playerinitiates a game sequence by making a telephone call to a ServiceProvider to a special number at the start of a game at step 100 forselection of an a first set of game information; or that first game setis determined by the program at random or according to predefinedparameters. The games can make use of the following information, alongwith the processing capabilities of the server to affect the timing,selection and content of server-initiated calls as well as the selectionof responses to player-initiated calls.

The players call the special number at the beginning of play and duringthe next forty-five minutes receive six call from Mr. Monopoly. Thesecalls create simple game effects, similar to Chance and Community Chestcards. However, these effects are designed to improve the playexperience and accelerate the game by driving property into the gamewith the first three calls and by driving money out of the game with thelast three calls.

A Player Profile 102 which may be implemented with a look up table (LUT)stored in memory facilitates tailored player content information forselection and content of server-initiated calls as well as the selectionof responses to player-initiated calls, as follows:

1—A record of the calls made and received from a given phone number, andthe content delivered.

2—Number of participating players—When input as part of a sign-inprocess.

3—Elapsed time since game start/last call.

4—Which calls the server has placed or is programmed to place.

5—Which phone numbers have been called by players, how many times eachhas been called, and the content played by the server.

6—Through on-line subscription, enabled board games allow the subscriberto input “customized” information.

7—Ongoing updates and refreshment of the content.

In addition to providing random telephone input during the course of amultiplayer board game, real time aspects use information obtained bythe communication provider's server based on the calls it receives. Tothis end, the player profile and/or a look up table (LUT) stored inmemory facilitate tailored player content information with randomness orpseudo-randomness used to appear random to the players, and to this endthe timing and content be controlled by software. For example whereastrue randomness could result in the same call being made 10 times in arow, at random intervals that turned about to be about 10-30 secondsapart the LUT used with the instruction generator can provide orderedcontent during game play that appears random.

Thereafter, a series of calls that will be made to the same phone duringthe course of play is triggered at step 104. At step 106 the serviceprovider instructions generate Content via series of calls to theplayer's phone during game to affect course/ timing of game play (duringthe next forty-five minutes receive six call from Mr. Monopoly). Thecalls provide instructions to create game effects (e.g., similar toChance and Community Chest cards, these effects are designed to improvethe play experience and accelerate the game by driving property into thegame and by driving money out of the game) at step 108. Accordingly theboard game method directs the players by generating electronicinformation instruction content for impacting game play with respect toat least one of the game players. The service provider facilitatesdelivery of the electronic information instruction content, and theelectronic information instruction content is communicated over atelecommunications network to at least one of the game players. In thepresent described embodiment, at step 110, property is driven into thegame with the first three calls, and at step 112 money is driven out ofthe game with the last three calls 112. The game then ends with updatesto Player Profile(s) at step 114.

While the features described may also be delivered via any of a varietyof electronic telecommunications media and digital content distributors,such as a cellular phone providers, video on demand (VOD), or an on-linewebsite set up so that the game is played alongside a laptop or anI-Pod™.

From the foregoing, it can be seen that there has been provided featuresfor an improved board game with an instruction generator via aninterface for receiving electronic information. While a particularembodiment of the present invention has been shown and described, itwill be obvious to those skilled in the art that changes andmodifications may be made without departing from the invention in itsbroader aspects. Therefore, the aim is to cover all such changes andmodifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.The matter set forth in the foregoing description and accompanyingdrawings is offered by way of illustration only and not as a limitation.The actual scope of the invention is intended to be defined bysubsequent claims when viewed in their proper perspective based on theprior art. Thus, it is intended that the foregoing detailed descriptionbe regarded as illustrative rather than limiting and that the followingclaims, including all equivalents, are intended to define the scope ofthe inventions.

1. A game comprising: a game board having a plurality of definedlocations; a plurality of game pieces for moving on the game board, atleast one game piece for each of a plurality of game players; aselectable game element for directing the players to move the gamepieces on the game board; an instruction generator comprising aninformation processor providing an instruction content to at least oneof the game players; and an interface comprising an electroniccommunications network for coupling the instruction generator forreceiving electronic information.
 2. A game as recited in claim 1,wherein the selectable game element comprises conventional board gameselectable game elements, including at least one of a game die, aselection of cards, or a choice selection indicator for directing theplayers to move the game pieces on the game board.
 3. A game as recitedin claim 1, wherein the instruction generator comprises a telephone andthe interface comprises a telephone network.
 4. A game as recited inclaim 1, wherein the instruction generator comprises a telephone and theinterface comprises telephone network phone cards, registration orlimited time subscriptions for access to a service provider.
 5. A gameas recited in claim 1, wherein the information processor comprises aserver and the electronic communications network comprises a computernetwork.
 6. A game as recited in claim 1, comprising a player profileassociated with the electronic communications network wherein the playerprofile comprises information unique to each of the plurality of gameplayers.
 7. A game as recited in claim 1, wherein the informationprocessor introduces variables into the game play based on the playerprofile.
 8. A game as recited in claim 1, wherein the instructiongenerator comprises a wireless communications device, and the interfacecomprises a cellular telephone network with the instruction generatorfor content including instant messaging (IM) or Short Message Service(SMS) is telecommunications.
 9. A game as recited in claim 1, comprisinga memory device associated with the information processor for providinggame play information to the instruction generator impacting the outcomeof the game.
 10. A game as recited in claim 9, wherein the memorycomprises a look up table (LUT) for use with the instruction generatorto provide ordered or random content during game play.
 11. A game asrecited in claim 10, wherein the content comprises a combination ofspeech and sound effects stored on the memory device.
 12. A game asrecited in claim 11, wherein the instruction generator comprises atelephone and the interface comprises a telephone network, and whereinthe content provides telephone input during the course of game play. 13.A game as recited in claim 12, wherein the instruction generatorcomprises a wireless communications device, and the interface comprisesa cellular telephone network with the instruction generator for contentincluding short message text communications.
 14. A board game havinggame pieces for moving on a game board, the game directing players tomove the game pieces a plurality of defined locations on the game board,comprising: an instruction generator comprising an information processorproviding instruction content to at least one of the game players; andan interface comprising an electronic communications network forcoupling the instruction generator for receiving electronic information;and said instruction content to the at least one of the game playersaccelerates the game.
 15. A game as recited in claim 14, wherein theinstruction generator comprises a telephone and the interface comprisesa telephone network.
 16. A game as recited in claim 14, wherein theinstruction generator comprises a telephone and the interface comprisestelephone network phone cards, registration or limited timesubscriptions for access to a service provider.
 17. A game as recited inclaim 14, wherein the instruction generator comprises a wirelesscommunications device, and the interface comprises a cellular telephonenetwork with the instruction generator for content including instantmessaging (IM) or Short Message Service (SMS) is telecommunications. 18.A game as recited in claim 14, wherein the instruction content to the atleast one of the game players accelerates the game by driving propertyinto the game and by driving money out of the game.
 19. A board gamemethod using game pieces for moving on a game board, the game directingplayers to move the game pieces a plurality of defined locations on thegame board, the method comprising: generating electronic informationinstruction content for impacting game play with respect to at least oneof the game players; providing a service provider for delivery of theelectronic information instruction content; and communicating theelectronic information instruction content over a telecommunicationsnetwork to at least one of the game players.
 20. A method as recited inclaim 19, wherein the communicating of the electronic informationinstruction content to the at least one of the game players acceleratesthe game, drives property into the game or drive money out of the game.21. A method as recited in claim 19, wherein the providing of theservice provider comprises a telephone interface uses telephone networkphone cards, registration or limited time subscriptions for access tothe service provider.